The word “archon” comes from the Greek word árkhon, which means “ruler,” that is, regent of someone. In this study, we will discover who they rule and why.

Contemporary interpretations of the Gnostic texts of antiquity describe the Archons as inferior spiritual beings who created and govern the material world. They are considered negative entities that hinder the path to enlightenment and liberation of the soul.

We Gnostics know that in order to achieve salvation and final liberation, it is necessary to transcend the material world and free ourselves from the control of the archons. Through secret knowledge (gnosis) and the embodiment of the true Christic nature, this liberation can be achieved and one can be completely happy. This is what is known in summary, and now we will elaborate on this topic for the benefit of all souls…

The Names of the Archons

Paraplex

“The first archon of the middle path is known as Paraplex, a female-figured archon, whose hair hangs down to her feet and under whose authority are twenty-five Archi-demons who rule over a multitude of other demons. And these demons are the ones who penetrate men and seduce them, enraging them, making them curse and slander, and they are the ones who take souls away and send them to their dense smoke and their perverse punishments.” – Pistis Sophia Chapter 139

It is clear that the Archons are Authorities, regents of columns of demons, beings who are responsible for ensuring that the law is fulfilled. The Christ incarnated in the Initiate looks down and dissolves regions of pain: “And he looked down upon the regions of Paraplex to dissolve their regions and cause them to perish.” – Pistis Sophia Chapter 139

Ariouth

He continued in his discourse saying: “The second order is called Ariouth the Ethiopian, a female archon, completely black, under whose command are fourteen other Archi-demons who rule over a multitude of other demons. And it is these demons who are under the direction of Ariouth the Ethiopian, who introduce themselves into agitators to stir up wars and provoke homicides; they numb their hearts, provoking them to anger in order to bring forth murderers.” – Pistis Sophia Chapter 140

Hecate

Later he continued his discourse saying: “The third order is called Hecate of the triple face. And there are twenty-seven Archi-demons under her command. And they are the ones who penetrate men and induce them to perjury, deceit, and to covet the goods of others.”

Hecate is the third aspect of the Eternal Mother. She always seeks the purification of her essence and submits it to long and difficult processes of purification in the lower realms or hells as we know them. The Archons are not evil; their works are necessary for the souls of the failed who did not have the will to eliminate the devil’s egos while they were alive. The infernal worlds with their regents and thousands of demons are necessary for the purification of the soul and the renewal of the cycle of 108 existences that are assigned to each essence in each of the 3000 cycles of the wheel of Samsara.

Parhedron Typhon

He continued saying: “The fourth order is called Parhedron Typhon, who is a powerful archon under whose authority are thirty-two demons. And it is these who introduce themselves into men and induce them to lust, fornication, adultery, and the constant practice of sexual intercourse. The souls that this archon carried off in rapture spent one hundred and twenty-eight years in his regions, while his demons tormented them with their dense smoke and their malignant fire. Thus they began their dissolution and destruction.” – Pistis Sophia Chapter 140

Yachtanabas

He continued in his discourse saying to his disciples: “The fifth order whose archon is called Yachtanabas, is a powerful archon under whose orders are many other demons. And it is these who penetrate men and make them lose respect for people – treating the just with injustice and favoring the cause of sinners, accepting gifts for a just judgment to pervert it, forgetting the poor and the needy –; these demons increase forgetfulness in their souls and care for things that bring no benefit, so that they cannot think about their lives so that when they leave the body they may be carried off.” – Pistis Sophia Chapter 140

In the Pistis Sophia only these five are mentioned, and it is observed that they are regents of columns of demons. These are the opposites of the five impressions of light, those divine and pure beings that are imprinted on the esoteric pentagram.

Some of the ancient texts that speak of the Archons

Ephesians 6:12-17: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
The Apocryphon of John: This text presents a detailed Gnostic cosmology and describes the creation of the material world by the Archons who appear as rulers. The rulers brought Adam into the shadow of death so that they could produce a figure again, but now of earth, water, fire, and the spirit that proceeds from matter, that is, from the ignorance of darkness, and desire, and their own contrary spirit. Apocryphon of John, Chapter 11
The Pistis Sophia: This text, which we know is the direct teaching of Jesus of Nazareth to his disciples, narrates the story of the fall and redemption of Sophia, the Soul or divine essence that is deceived by the Archons. Five are mentioned, and it establishes that they are regents of spheres, having under their command many demons that incite man to sin.
The Second Treatise of the Great Seth: This text describes the Archons as jealous beings who try to prevent humans from attaining gnosis.
The Gospel of Philip: This text contains teachings about the sacraments and the nature of the human being and mentions the Archons as obstacles on the path to truth.
The Gospel of Thomas: This text contains a collection of sayings of Jesus that are often interpreted from a Gnostic perspective and allude to the deceptive nature of the Archons.

For us students and practitioners of Gnosis, the fight against the Archons is an internal struggle because they reside in and govern regions of our psychological space. This struggle requires self-knowledge, the elimination of psychological defects, and the full development of consciousness. Through the practice of self-observation, meditation, prayer, and sacrifice for others, it is possible to free oneself from the influence of the Archons and achieve enlightenment.

The Archons oppose the awakening of consciousness and spiritual liberation. They try to divert the initiate from the path of self-realization and the embodiment of the particular Logos.

It is important to clarify that the teachings of Samael Aun Weor on the Archons are part of his particular doctrine and are not shared by all Gnostic or esoteric currents of the past. However, his focus on the fight against the Archons as an internal process of self-transformation resonates with many people who seek spiritual growth and personal liberation.

Samael was incarnated in the world and through his Bodhisattva Aun Weor delivered the powerful keys to dominate oneself, and therefore, to dominate those secret regents who govern our intimate processes. With the constant practice of the three factors of the integral revolution of consciousness, we may one day reach the Father, like the prodigal son, repentant for having strayed from the realms of light and having squandered our Soul’s values.